| Item | Description | Resolution |
|---|---|---|
| PART 1 - PUBLIC | ||
| PP 07/013 |
Update on any action identified in the last Minutes. |
No items were identified. |
| PP 07/014 |
Minutes |
RESOLVED: That the minutes of the meeting of the Panel held on 8 March 2007 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman. |
| PP 07/015 |
Presentation by the Mayor |
The Chairman introduced the new Mayor, Councillor Mrs Kemp, who was delighted and honoured at her election and looked forward to a challenging and enjoyable year. The Mayor advised that her charity for the year would be K.Ho.C.A. which raised funds to distribute to smaller charities to meet the specific needs of people with mental health disabilities. The Chairman wished her a successful year in office. |
| PP 07/016 |
Chairman's Announcements |
The Chairman thanked Councillor Aikman for his hard work and contribution to new initiatives in his previous role as Cabinet Member for Community Development. Councillor Heslop was introduced as the new Vice Chairman of the Parish Partnership Panel and Tonbridge Forum and Cabinet Member for Community Development. His new role and responsibilities were outlined with parishes being invited to advise of any issues that required further assistance from the Borough Council. The Chairman introduced Councillor Court, the Cabinet Member for Community Safety, explaining that this new portfolio would have responsibility for issues surrounding hospitals and health. Parish Councils were reminded by the Chief Executive, in his capacity as the Returning Officer, to return election expenses and signed declarations by 1 June 2007. The legal implications were explained and it was emphasised that it was a criminal offence not to return them within 28 days. Parishes were urged to share this information with colleagues who were not present. The Chief Executive took the opportunity to remind parishes that the deadline for co-opting new members, if necessary, was 22 June 2007. If the appropriate action was not taken and vacancies remained it was possible that the Borough Council would intervene calling for new elections which would be at the expense of the parish or town council. The Chairman thanked the Chief Executive for the timely reminders and recommended that parishes take urgent action to remedy the situation. |
| PP 07/017 |
Presentation by Charlton Athletic Football Club |
Alan Dennington representing the Positive Futures Project division of Charlton Athletic Football Club explained their role in delivering schemes across Kent encouraging strong community spirit by engaging with young people. The Panel was advised that Positive Futures was a national sports-based social inclusion programme for young people, aged between 10-19, offering opportunities to engage in employment, education and training. The Project looked at the aspirations of young people and aimed to provide a positive self image and sense of community by involving them in community based initiatives. Early impacts of the scheme included educational improvements and a reduction in youth crime. Funding was provided by a group of partners including Charlton Athletic Community Solutions, Kent County Council, Kent Police, Kent Fire and Rescue, Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council and parish councils. The Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership and the Borough Council were fully supportive of the initiative with areas of most deprivation and high crime targeted for the initial pilot scheme. Approaches from any parishes wishing to participate in the project were welcomed but it was recognised that funding at a local level could be an issue. Requests should be directed to Roger Shapter in the first instance. Copies of the presentation would be circulated with the minutes at the request of the Chairman. |
| PP 07/018 |
Police liaison. |
Deputy Area Commander Very introduced his replacement Chief Inspector Tony Thomas to the Panel and reassured Members of his continuing commitment to the Borough. Crime and disorder were very important issues and he would be monitoring this closely. The Chairman congratulated Deputy Area Commander Very on his recent promotion wishing him every success for the future. The Chairman expressed his gratitude, which was endorsed by Members, for his tremendous influence and the significant impact that he had brought to the area. Acting Chief Inspector Chahal gave an overview of the neighbourhood policing teams, providing contact details and advising of new additions. Details of community engagement were outlined including the establishment of new priorities dealing with other anti-social behaviour not just crime. Police would work with other established partners to identify longer term solutions. As part of the process PACT (Partners and Communities Together) surgeries would be scheduled to promote community engagement. Residents would be able to raise local concerns with officers who would take appropriate action. The crime figures for Tonbridge and Malling were summarised and Members were pleased to note the reduction in crime for the year. Parishes were encouraged to participate in Neighbourhood Watch schemes and the recruitment of another neighbourhood watch co-ordinator was confirmed. A presentation on Neighbourhood Watch schemes would be given to a future Parish Partnership Panel meeting. Members were encouraged by the positive crime figures reported but expressed concern that PACT surgeries represented duplication of work. The importance of engaging with the community, listening to residents and addressing their concerns was recognised by Acting Chief Inspector Chahal. R Shapter explained that the PACT surgeries being piloted in Wrotham, Borough Green and Platt had a 3 month review pending. However, the need for better co-ordination between the police, the Borough Council and the County Council had already been identified as an issue to prevent duplication of work and to aid effective working and communication. |
| PP 07/019 |
Speed Watch - Presentations by: - ~Kent Police ~Birling Parish Council |
PC James Bull, the Speed Watch co-ordinator, explained that Speed Watch was a countywide campaign designed to counteract speeding and involved joint working between police and parish councils. The importance of volunteers in successfully reducing speed was emphasised and parishes encouraged to join the scheme. Parishes were reminded that grants existed for the purchase of Speed Watch equipment and it was possible for several parishes to share the costs. Birling Parish Council shared their very positive experience of Speed Watch and urged all parishes to participate. Their scheme had attracted 17 volunteers and since its commencement at the beginning of the year residents had noticed a significant and encouraging effect. West Malling Parish Council shared experiences of their fledgling scheme advising that they were talking to Offham and Birling Parish Councils learning from their experience and sharing details. The collection of key performance indicators, case histories or other forms of data providing evidence that the scheme was successful was suggested as an incentive to encourage more volunteers. Consideration as to provision of support and motivation from the police might be necessary for the longer term. West Malling Parish Council advised that a Traffic Consultative meeting was arranged for 31 July 2007 in Ryarsh and invited other parishes to attend. Members were discouraged that not all parishes were participating in Speed Watch querying the reasons behind that decision and wondering whether a survey asking for more information should be circulated. Borough Green Parish Council offered an alternative approach. They had employed a radar classifier which identified times and types of issues. The data collected had been used by the parish council in providing evidence and information for planning applications. If parishes required further information on this system they were invited to contact Borough Green Parish Council direct. The Chairman was grateful to everyone who had participated and encouraged other parishes to join the scheme as it engendered a community spirit. |
| PP 07/020 |
Consultation on Highway Schemes |
Borough Green Parish Council raised a question about reducing the length of consultation time on projects such as pedestrian crossing locations and construction. The Chief Engineer explained that a full report detailing the consultation process with parish councils would be going to the Joint Transportation Board on 11 June 2007. Members were also reminded that these types of issues were the responsibility of the Kent Highways Service and Borough Green agreed to address their concerns to Kent County Council in an attempt to resolve this issue. |
| PP 07/021 |
Tour De France |
The Chief Leisure Officer gave a presentation on the Tour De France outlining the programme scheduled for the event passing through the Borough on Sunday 8 July. The benefits to the Borough were highlighted and details of the route through Tonbridge and Malling were shared. Responsibilities, marketing and promotion, events within Tonbridge and parish council participation were also explained. Members were concerned that some residents had not been advised of road closures and were assured that the issue would be followed up with Kent County Council urgently. The Chairman thanked everyone involved for all the hard work undertaken and felt the event would be a great success. A copy of the presentation would be circulated with the Minutes. |
| PP 07/022 |
Blue Planet |
The Customer Services Manager provided background to the Blue Planet live event scheduled for Sunday, 26 August 2007. George Fenton a highly respected composer and brother of the new Mayor, Councillor Mrs Kemp, had offered to run the multi-sensory experience which was seen as a major fundraising and unique event with profits donated to nominated charities. It was explained that by working in partnership with several organisations successful sponsorship had been gained to fund the event for which the Borough Council was extremely grateful. Parish councils were asked to publicise the event by word of mouth, newsletters and websites. Leaflets promoting the event would be produced and parishes were asked to assist with distributing these to residents. The Mayor and Leader expressed their gratitude for all the hard work undertaken in organising this special event, emphasising the once in a lifetime opportunity to experience the occasion whilst raising monies for good causes. A copy of the presentation would be circulated with the Minutes. |
| PP 07/023 |
Presentation on Housing Assistance Policy |
The Panel received a presentation explaining the grant assistance and financial help available for residents to improve and adapt their homes. Members were reminded that effective promotion of the grants and assistance available was vital in encouraging take up and improving the condition of residents' homes in the Borough. It was emphasised that the private sector housing team would continue to look at different ways of promoting services to the community including attending parish council events to offer advice and assistance to local residents. It was hoped that parish councils could assist in signposting eligible residents to accessing available grants. A copy of the presentation would be circulated with the minutes. |
| PP 07/024 |
Green Waste Update |
The Chief Environmental Health Officer (Operations) outlined the Council's achievements in recycling 40% of household rubbish this year. The Panel was advised that more than 90% of refuse was recycled, composted or used to generate electricity. It was acknowledged that these levels were possible partly due to the world-class processing facilities nearby. Recent adverse media publicity was highlighted and evidence provided that the position locally was different from what had been portrayed nationally with a weekly collection of food waste available to residents. The extension of the green waste scheme was confirmed and it was hoped that the final phase of 10,000 properties would commence in September 2007. Members were pleased at this progress but requested that the availability of weekly collections of food waste be emphasised to residents. The publicity campaign promoting effective and proper use of the scheme was outlined to the Panel and included community meetings, distribution of leaflets explaining the scheme, bin stickers and officers providing advice and assistance. Concern was expressed at the recent court case relating to Grosvenor Waste and their subsequent fine. Members were advised that the judge had concluded that the company was a good example of waste contractor but had been subject to a technical infringement. Assurances were given to the Panel that appropriate and proper investigations into the company had been undertaken before the granting of the plastic recycling contract and officers were confident that a professional service would be provided. The Panel requested more information on battery recycling and was advised that a pilot scheme was ongoing in other authorities. The position on this matter would be monitored and once the results of the pilot were known Tonbridge and Malling would be in the forefront of any recycling scheme. The Leader assured Members that this authority had no intention of implementing electronic tagging of bins, penalties or rewards and took the view that the waste collection service was included in residents' council tax payments. |
| PP 07/025 |
Kent County Council Services Update |
The Kent County Council Liaison Manager, Loic Flory, provided an update which would be circulated with the minutes and invited questions from the Panel, none of which were forthcoming. The County Member for Malling North advised that a Joint Local Board meeting had been scheduled for 12 July 2007. The Leader invited the parish councils to consider which organisations they might like to receive presentations from at future meetings. |